But what about elsewhere in the Championship? Wellm, as we head into another international break, we thought the latest two-week hiatus from club football offers us the opportunity to reflect on those key moments so far.

But the new Aston Villa boss was in no way playing down the achievement after a hoodoo-ending 2-1 win at Reading.

In itself beating the Royals in their own backyard wasn’t the world’s greatest feat, even though they had been undefeated at the Madejski Stadium up until that point this season.

It was more that Villa had actually won away!

The Championship victory at Reading was Villa’s first triumph on their travels for 437 days. Not since the opening day of last season - a 1-0 Premier League success at Bournemouth on August 8 2015 - had Villa won away.

Villa fans celebrate behind Reading goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi.

Their hardy bunch of away followers had seen them go 26 league and cup matches without a win. That’s an awful lot of time, money and energy invested with nothing in return.

But when Oasis anthem ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ blared out the speakers at the final whistle following Jordan Ayew’s late winner from the penalty spot, the 4,000-plus Villa fans joined in with gusto.

And they haven’t looked back in anger as Bruce has continued his unbeaten run with three wins and two draws, clinching 11 points from a possible 15 and convincing the claret and blue faithful that things are looking up.

Barnsley

There is a plethora to pick from, but Adam Armstrong’s stunning debut goal at Deepdale outshines anything else.

At a time in the season where Simon Grayson’s Preston side were struggling for form and desperate for a win at home, they laid siege to the Barnsley 18-yard box for most of the second half.

On-loan Newcastle man Armstrong’s introduction shortly after the hour mark is one that both sets of supporters there that day will remember for changing the destination of the points in spectacular fashion.

Barnsley's Adam Armstrong. (Image: PA Wire)

Armstrong latched onto a long Hourihane punt upfield ahead of Alex Baptiste before backheeling it one side of the defender and scampering round him on the other.

That opened up the space to then curl a stunning first-time effort beyond Anders Lindegaard with his left foot – all in front of the travelling Reds faithful.

As far as debut goals go, they don’t come much better. Armstrong’s name was trending on Twitter, the video went viral and it was the toast of Football on 5 that evening.

It was truly an ‘I was there’ moment as an away fan and one that puts your club in the spotlight for all the right reasons.

Birmingham City

Throughout Gary Rowett’s two-year tenure Birmingham City have saved some of their worst performances for Sheffield Wednesday.

So even though Blues were on a run of decent form it was with just a little trepidation they welcomed the Owls to St Andrew’s on September 17.

The Blues manager responded to going a goal down to Steven Fletcher’s strike by giving Jutkiewicz his home debut and really going for it.

Birmingham City's Lukas Jutkiewicz celebrates.

Despite Clayton Donaldson nervelessly converting from the spot to bring the Blues level, the home fans wanted more as they exhorted their team forward.

Two minutes into injury time Jacques Maghoma scooped a cross on to Jutkiewicz’s head.

The 27-year-old twisted in mid-air and redirected the ball back across Westwood and inside the post. It was his first goal in two-and-a-half years, yet it was the finish of a man who looked bang in form.

This was a match that won’t be forgotten in a long time. And Jutkiewicz’s goal will live even longer in the memory.

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Blackburn Rovers

“It showcased the squad’s potential and the fact that it secured a 2-1 victory made it even sweeter.”

Sam Jones, UCLan journalism student and Blackburn fan

It is not often that Blackburn can look like Barcelona, especially on a cold Saturday afternoon in Derby.

But the 25 passes that led to what could, come the end of the season, be a crucial away winner, was one of those moments. That goal showcased the squad’s potential and the fact that it secured a 2-1 victory, made it even sweeter for the disbelieving, but equally ecstatic travelling fans.

Danny Graham celebrates his goal for Blackburn.

Danny Graham’s name went on the scoresheet, but this was a team effort of the highest calibre. If the players involved had been Messi, Neymar, Suarez and Iniesta, the pundits would have been drooling over it. And the replay would have been repeated on many occasions.

A missed first-half penalty had let Derby off the hook and when they opened the scoring on 69 minutes, there looked to be only one winner.

But Rovers responded to draw level almost instantly, before they showed their class with that special goal. It remains Rovers’ only away win of the season to date and was well worth waiting for.

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Brentford

If people don’t believe that a week is a long time in football then look no further than Romaine Sawyers as proof of this fact.

On October 22, he was the villain in Brentford fans’ eyes and was jeered off during the poor 2-0 home defeat to Barnsley.

However, by October 28, he was the hero after a wonderful finish to secure the Bees a 2-0 win at rivals QPR.

Sawyers was down after the loss to Barnsley, admitting he was finding it a struggle to make the step up to the Championship.

Romaine Sawyers scores for Brentford. (Image: Lewis Darling)

However, the squad, staff and supporters rallied round him telling him to keep his chin up telling him that his moment will come.

Just six days later, that moment did come and Sawyers ensured that he will always be remembered fondly at Griffin Park as the Bees outclassed QPR.

Josh Clarke scored the opener at Loftus Road and both he and Maxime Colin helped to set up the decisive moment as the Frenchman squared the ball to Sawyers, who lifted his shot into the top corner and sent the Brentford fans behind that goal into a state of delirium.

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Brighton

“The show of unity between his team-mates to dedicate the goal was something special.”

Lee Wilmot, Croydon Advertiser

You do not have to look too far for Brighton’s moment of the season.

Prior to this weekend, you would have to say that the previous week’s 5-0 demolition of Norwich City would have to be the Seagulls’ best moment of the new Championship campaign.

Brighton put paid to the idea that the Canaries would be too strong in the race for promotion with a five-star showing at the Amex Stadium to move into second place in the table.

And they reinforced that move into the top two with a new moment of the season against Bristol City on Saturday.

The reason for Steve Sidwell’s opening goal being their moment of the season is two-fold.

Firstly, the goal itself – it was glorious.

Brighton's Steve Sidwell.

Picking the ball up inside his own half, Sidwell strode over the halfway line before looking up, seeing the keeper off his line and firing a peach of a lob into the back of the net from inside the centre circle a la David Beckham at Selhurst Park.

Then, the celebration that followed brought a tear to the eye.

Sidwell and all of his ten team-mates went over to the Brighton bench, picked up Anthony Knockeart’s shirt, which had been given its own seat on the bench and held it aloft.

Knockeart – the Seagulls’ talisman – was not part of the matchday squad because his father had died in the week leading up to the clash.

The show of unity between his team-mates to dedicate the goal and consequently the win was something special and proved that football really can be a force for good.

Bristol City

A major improvement on the side that initially struggled to retain its Championship status last term, the new-look Robins squad constructed by head coach Lee Johnson and chief operating officer Mark Ashton has performed at a level that suggests a top-half finish might be possible this time around.

We are 16 games into a season that has been sufficiently punctuated with high-points to encourage City fans in the belief that their club is once again heading in the right direction.

But for me, Jamie Paterson’s winning goal against Nottingham Forest on October 1 stands alone as a high point in a season that has definitely produced more cheers than tears to date.

Jamie Paterson celebrates scoring against Nottingham Forest.

Trailing 1-0 at half-time, City awoke from their slumbers to stage their customary second-half fight-back at Ashton Gate, Abraham seizing upon a back pass to poach an equaliser just after the hour mark.

That set the scene for Paterson, a Forest player as recently as last summer, to grab a dramatic winner with a single swish of his right boot from the edge of the penalty area.

A packed Ashton Gate erupted as the ball hit the back of the net and the attacking midfielder responded by celebrating wildly in front of photographers stationed behind the goal.

It was a truly special moment, one that produced a 2-1 victory which cemented City’s position in the play-off places ahead of the two-week break for international matches.

Burton Albion

Beating Derby County

“Years of being seen as the club in Derby’s shadow had come to this.”

Ashley Wilkinson, Burton Mail

Burton Albion and Derby County are separated by just 10 miles of the A38 and, up until 2009, at least four footballing divisions.

If football fans in Burton wanted to watch a Football League side, until Albion made League Two with promotion from the Conference seven years ago, they would have to make that short northern trip to the iPro Stadium.

Well, that gap has closed, and in some time, too. Albion won back-to-back promotions from League Two to the Championship under Gary Rowett, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Nigel Clough – and are on parity with the Rams in terms of their place within English football.

This was a special night for Brewers fans. They had welcomed Derby supporters – travelling off the Kingsway roundabout, onto the A38, off at Clay Mills junction and up Derby Road to the Pirelli – several times for pre-season friendlies.

Jackson Irvine of Burton Albion celebrates.

The players would match the enthusiasm and passion of the fans on the pitch. Jackson Irvine’s fine stooping header from Lucas Akins’ right-wing cross sealed a famous 1-0 win under the lights at the Pirelli Stadium.

Years of being seen as the club in Derby’s shadow had come to this. It meant the world to supporters, and to the chairman Ben Robinson, who described it to me as his best moment in his many decades with the club.

It must, too, have meant something to Nigel Clough. He would insist to the media post-match it was just another game of football but, after the manner in which he was sacked by Derby in 2013 having slashed the wage bill massively in his four-and-a-half year spell at the iPro, he must have felt some satisfaction at seeing his newly-assembled Championship side beat the team that had spent so heavily following his departure.

Cardiff City

Sol Bamba’s performance against Bristol City

“This was a performance that will live long in the memory.”

Philip Smith, Wales Online

It was so good, you didn’t even notice it at first.

The initial reaction was that Bobby Reid had inexplicably skied his effort from just a yard out. The goal was open, the chance to score a last gasp equaliser and make himself a hero surely to good to be spurned.

Yet as it transpired, Reid had been Bamba’d.

All night Bristol City had got to the edge of Cardiff’s area or the cusp of creating something, only to find the Bluebirds’ debutant in inspired form.

Sol Bamba gets stuck in on his Cardiff City debut

He headed, he kicked, he saved.

That touch, a breathtaking touch, that just took the ball away from Reid’s control saved the three points he looked to have secured twenty minutes earlier with a flying volley.

Tammy Abraham, the country’s most talked about youngster, barely got a kick. He was bullied,

squeezed up the pitch and given absolutely nothing to work with.

Bamba was simply inspirational.

How consistent a player he can for Cardiff remains to be seen but what is for sure, this was a

performance that will live long in the memory.

Derby County

The 2-0 win at Cardiff City

“It was all about getting a result.”

Steve Nicholson, Derby Telegraph

All the talk pre-match was about manager Nigel Pearson. After this game all the talk was of the players and their performance.

Only a second league win in 10 attempts saw Derby beat Cardiff to climb out of the Championship’s bottom three.

And all this to a backdrop of upheaval.

Nick Blackman puts a penalty past Cardiff 'keeper Ben Amos

Pre-match was dominated by the shock news that Pearson had been suspended by the club pending an internal investigation.

His assistant, Chris Powell, took charge and oversaw a 2-0 victory.

Both goals came in the second half from Tom Ince and substitute Nick Blackman, a penalty.

Victory ended a winless run of six matches in all competitions and was a timely lift.

It was all about getting a result.

Fulham

Denis Odoi’s man-of-the-match display against Newcastle

“Fulham and their newly acquired Belgian defender refused to go meekly into the dark night.”

Paul Warburton, Get West London

Fulham’s moment of the season – if we’re talking ‘moment’ and not 90 minutes – was the flick by full-back Denis Odoi over the head of Newcastle’s Paul Dummett in the opening match.

Whites were looking at a big defeat by the fallen Premier League giant.

Surely, bookies suggested, Magpies and their top-flight players would be too good for a side escaping relegation by the skin of their teeth just four months earlier?

Instead, Fulham and their newly acquired Belgian defender refused to go meekly into the dark night.

Deep into the second period, Odoi used his back to flick the ball over Dummett before running on and collecting in stride.

Needless to say, Sky cameras, watching the game live, repeated the moment ad nauseum, a bit like us, you might say.

In fact, Odoi later admitted this wasn’t really him, and the moment fought against natural instincts to be efficient and less showy.

A fab bit of flair was made all the better when Matt Smith rose just before half time to head the game’s only goal.

Huddersfield Town

The 2-1 win at Newcastle United

“Town fans were sent into ecstasy and sang their side home in fine voice.”

Rory Benson, Huddersfield Examiner

The moment of the season so far from a Town perspective has to be Jack Payne’s 82nd minute strike at St James’ Park sealing a historic win over Championship giants Newcastle United.

Town hadn’t faced Newcastle in the league since 1984 when they travelled up to the North East in August this year. They had also not won at St James’ Park since 1953, so history was well and truly against the Terriers.

What unfolded however was a masterclass in David Wagner’s gegenpressing style of football, with Town utilising the counter-attack to devastating effect.

Huddersfield Town's Jack Payne (left) celebrates with Sean Scannell.

The Terriers took the lead on the stroke of half time when Nahki Wells converted Rajiv Van La Parra’s low driven cross into the front post but when skipper Mark Hudson was penalised for handball just before the hour mark - with Dwight Gayle converting with his head after Danny Ward had parried the spot kick - it felt as though the tide could turn in favour of the Geordies.

But Ward was hardly called into action after the penalty and when Kasey Palmer dispossessed Chancel Mbemba on the halfway line, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

The on-loan Chelsea man threaded a ball past Jamaal Lascelles and into the path of Payne, who shimmied before drilling a low shot into the bottom corner of the Newcastle net.

Town fans were sent into ecstasy and sang their side home in fine voice.

What a day to be a Town fan.

Ipswich Town

Grant Ward’s hat-trick on his debut

“Ward was to have the final say to earn himself the match ball and a place in the history books.”

Darren Campbell, Ipswich Town fan at the Birmingham Mail

The opening game of a campaign can offer fresh optimism for just about anyone. But Ipswich fans probably had more than most to be positive about after their Championship curtain-raiser this year.

One of the few rays of light in the summer had been the £600,000 acquisition of Grant Ward, a promising Tottenham youngster offering Town a much-needed outlet on the wing. But with him lacking fitness, he played no part in a first 45 minutes against Barnsley that did little to encourage the Portman Road crowd.

Manager Mick McCarthy then gave Ward his chance as a half-time substitute. What unfolded over the next 45 minutes was one of the greatest player debuts in Town’s history.

Less than forty seconds after stepping onto the pitch, the 21-year-old raced to meet the ball near the edge of the box and used his first touch as an Ipswich player to power it into the bottom corner.

Things might have turned sour when that lead was relinquished just three minutes later. But a quarter of an hour into his bow, Ward had his second goal, making the most of poor Barnsley defending to drive in at the near post.

Chatter was already growing in the home crowd about whether Colin Viljoen’s debut hat-trick in 1967 was about to be matched. But with the scoreline poised at 3-2 with a quarter of an hour still to go, thoughts turned to simply holding onto the points.

Yet Ward was to have the final say, drilling another low shot from the edge of the box under the Barnsley keeper to earn himself the match ball and a place in the history books.

Leeds United

The 3-2 win at Norwich

“Fans are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel.”

David Dubas-Fisher, Trinity Mirror Data Unit

Beating one of the favourites to win the league is always good. Beating them in their own back yard is even better. But doing so to move into the play-off places with a 3-2 victory at Norwich City, a side heavily tipped for promotion, for the first time since Boxing Day 2013 was something special.

The last few years have all been doom and gloom at Elland Road.

Even just a few months ago the club’s prospects seemed bleak. Promising academy players were leaving the club left, right and centre.

The club was managerless with nobody seemingly wanting the job, and the owner, Massimo Cellino, was accused by the FA of making illegal payments in the transfer of Ross McCormack.

Now though, fans are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. The EFL Cup victory over Norwich to reach the quarter-finals made it feel like things were finally looking up. Beating them again in the league confirmed that they were.

Newcastle United

The 4-3 win over Norwich City

“The celebrations for the goal will never be forgotten.”

Lee Ryder, Newcastle Chronicle

For sheer drama it has to be the 4-3 win over Norwich City on a night that seemed to restore some faith into the long suffering fans of Newcastle United.

In recent seasons the supporters have been used to watching their side crumble when falling behind.

Against Norwich it looked like a Championship reality check had come the way of Benitez’s team.

Newcastle United's Dwight Gayle celebrates the winning goal in the match against Norwich City

Even at 3-3 when Yoan Gouffran flicked home the equaliser many fans would have accepted a point.

But Gayle’s last gasp injury time winner produced a sterling comeback and the black and whites held on for three points to nick it 4-3.

The celebrations for the goal will never be forgotten as the home bench cleared and unused subs and players who’d been taken off dashed down the touchline.

Aleksandar Mitrovic wrestled Gayle to the ground then picked up Benitez on a crazy night for this crazy football club.

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Norwich City

The EFL Cup win at Everton

“This was a moment for the travelling fans to cherish.”

Tom Marshall-Bailey, Trinity Mirror Regionals

Having been billed alongside Newcastle United as one of the pre-season promotion favourites in the Championship, Norwich’s attempts to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking have proven slightly more difficult than anticipated.

The Canaries are now winless in their last four league games and that run extends to five when you factor in the EFL Cup defeat to Leeds United too.

Alex Neil’s side have remarkably beaten just one side in the top half of the second tier so far this season and a recent 5-0 thumping at second-placed Brighton has cast serious doubt on their ability to go straight back up.

Steven Naismith celebrates scoring

The season by Norwich’s standards has been underwhelming so far, but the EFL Cup third-round win at Everton was a notable high.

Goals from Steven Naismith at his former club and Josh Murphy secured a victory made all the more impressive by the fact their hosts were at that point unbeaten under new manager Ronald Koeman.

Given it was the Canaries’ first victory at Goodison Park since Efan Ekoku scored four in September 1993, this was a moment for the travelling fans to cherish.

Nottingham Forest

Hildeberto Pereira’s goal against Birmingham City

“Pereira had become a cult figure among the Forest faithful.”

Paul Taylor, Nottingham Post

The on loan Benfica player has, in fact, been involved in two of the most memorable moments of a frustrating season so far, with his twisting, mazy run which took him past three Aston Villa players, before he set up Henri Lansbury to bag a dramatic equaliser being another that will stick in the mind for a long time.

But it was his effort against another West Midlands side, Birmingham, that properly demonstrated exactly what the 20-year-old winger or full back is capable of.

Hildeberto Pereira scores against Nottingham Forest.

Collecting the ball on the edge of his own box, Pereira launched into a powerful, driving run that took him two thirds of the length of the pitch and between several opposition players – who were left trailing in his wake.

After feeding Ben Osborn on the left side, Pereira barely broke stride as he surged into the penalty area to latch onto a precise return pass and apply a forceful, emphatic finish that made the score 3-1 and killed off any thoughts Gary Rowett’s side had of forging a fightback.

Pereira had become a cult figure among the Forest faithful at that point and while disciplinary issues since have tempered that love affair just a little, he remains a hot prospect for the future, if he can learn to curb his habit of getting into trouble with referees.

Preston

The home win over Aston Villa

“Grayson can’t have wished for a better performance.”

Oliver Dawes, Sports Journalist and Preston North End fan

Preston deservedly earned praise for their performances last season, but they ended the campaign with some patchy home form – and started the season in the same way. From the end of February to the start of October, Preston had only won two league games at home, and manager Simon Grayson needed to make Deepdale a fortress again.

When Aston Villa, one of Grayson’s former clubs from his playing days, arrived at Deepdale on October 1st, they were in desperate need of points to ease the pressure on Roberto Di Matteo, and with Preston looking to pull away from the bottom three, there was a real intensity to the game from the word go.

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Grayson can’t have wished for a better performance. Ben Pearson’s early goal set the tone, and whilst Jordan Hugill struck to make it 2-0 before half time, North End should have been even further in front as a disorganised Villa side fell apart at Deepdale.

Nothing summed the game up quite like Chris Maxwell’s penalty save to deny Ross McCormack in injury time; everything just seemed to go Preston’s way. It was quite possibly North End’s finest performance over 90 minutes since the play-off final win over Swindon Town in May 2015, and the result ultimately cost Di Matteo his job at Villa Park.

Preston fans will be hoping that their side can continue to try and defy the odds against ‘bigger’ teams, just as they did against Aston Villa, in what was possibly their best performance of the campaign.

Queens Park Rangers

Tjaronn Chery’s free-kick against Blackburn

“This one was the cherry on top.”

Paul Warburton, Get West London

The BBC described Tjaronn Chery’s free-kick against Blackburn on September 10 as ‘sublime.’

We’re unwilling to disagree with Auntie on that one. The Dutchman has built a reputation for lethal free-kicks set by sat nav in his boots, regardless of a human wall in front of him.

Tjaronn Chery gets the gratitude

This one was, well, a cherry on top of a decent game where the ‘10-and-a-half’ – Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s description of the attacker-cum-midfielder – took aim 25 yards out and caught apex between bar and post to send the ball down, in, and over the line.

But almost as a reminder of Rs middling season, JFH received a different number this week, his P45 – and the game against Rovers that ended 1-1 was typical of his ex-team’s toils for minimal reward.

It was thrilling stuff - but the game then turned on its head completely when McCleary was sent off for a shove on Conor Hourihane after 34 minutes.

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Suddenly Reading were down to 10 and we had to see another side of their play. In the second half they had to stand firm under huge pressure from the hosts who were looking to make their extra man count.

Rotherham United

Some fans, particularly the ones I speak with regularly, would probably suggest the sacking of Alan Stubbs. As harsh as that sounds, it’s hard to disagree.

Under his management, the Millers managed a win ratio of just seven per cent, and his 14 game tenure is the shortest in the club’s history.

Alan Stubbs.

They failed to win a point in any of his seven away league games, conceding 23 and scoring just six, as well as managing to ship five at home in their EFL Cup defeat to League Two Morecambe.

Other than that it’s been slim pickings, but the moment of the season on the pitch may have been the first 20 minutes of the opening game of the season where they raced in to a 2-0 lead over Wolves and the Stubbs reign couldn’t have started any better.

The fact they ended up drawing 2-2, against 10 men, showed it was never likely to be a smooth ride.

Sheffield Wednesday

The 3-2 win over Bristol City

“It looked as though the door had been shut…”

Matt Harris, Essex Live

A shocking first half saw the Owls 2-0 down at the break with young striking sensation Tammy Abraham running the defence ragged.

Carlos made a double substitution at half-time replacing left-back Daniel Pudil with Forestieri and Jones with Wallace.

Within seven minutes the Owls had prized the door as Steven Fletcher headed in his second in as many matches.

Barry Bannan was on target for Sheffield Wednesday.

However, it looked as though the door had been shut when Sam Hutchinson was harshly sent off for bringing down Marlon Pack as he slipped in the area. Lee Tomlin’s penalty struck the post and when the ball was cleared towards the Bristol half Gary O’Neil scythed down Gary Hooper and he was sent off.

The Robins had held a man advantage for less than a minute.

Bannan’s superb 30 yard effort brought the scores level with 15 minutes to go before Lee sparked amazing scenes as he slotted home with seconds to spare.

Wigan Athletic

Gary Caldwell’s sacking

“Fans will be hoping that the appointment of Warren Joyce will be seen as the turning point of this campaign.”

Adam Jones, Trinity Mirror Regionals

Not exactly a “good” moment - but it’s hard to argue against this being the pivotal point of Wigan’s season so far.

Having been appointed in April 2015, it was too late to save the club from relegation to League One really.

Gary Caldwell led Wigan to the Leaue 1 title.

But, he did guide the club straight back to the Championship in his first full season as boss.

Going from that seemingly comfortable position to being sacked hasn’t been good viewing.

Wigan have only managed three wins all season – with one of those even coming after Caldwell was dismissed.

Fans will be hoping that the appointment of Warren Joyce will be seen as the turning point of this campaign where staying up is essential.

Wolves

The sacking of Walter Zenga

“In short it was a team without purpose and continuity.”

Steve Wollaston, Birmingham Mail

It seems strange perhaps to talk of the sacking of a head coach as a high point of the season, for Wolves though, it could prove to be the turning point.

The appointment of Zenga was a radical and bold move by the new owners Fosun and one that failed in spectacular fashion.

A managerial journeyman who had recently been playing his trade in the United Arab Emirates and had no experience of managing in England.

Former Wolves boss Walter Zenga.

The moments of flair were outweighed by catastrophic defensive displays, in short it was a team without purpose and continuity.

The truth is there were very few highlights, and that’s why the main highlight took place off the field in the Molineux corridors of power.

The decision to sack Zenga was as bold as the decision to appoint him.

Neither decision was particularly popular with the fans, but the decision to show him the door was very timely and could save the season.